


Trying Not To Lose Everything

by Badassium1970



Category: Game Grumps, Starbomb
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Jealousy, M/M, Misunderstanding, polybomb
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-29
Updated: 2016-06-29
Packaged: 2018-07-19 02:41:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,176
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7341361
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Badassium1970/pseuds/Badassium1970
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dan finds out that Arin and Brian have been in a relationship for a while and is hurt.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Trying Not To Lose Everything

Dan had been flirting with Arin a lot more than usual, both on Grumps and off of it. He was also responding to Arin’s flirting and Arin was reacting well to Dan’s advances, making him think he was getting somewhere. He wasn’t. 

The pair had just finished a particularly great Grump session and Dan had decided to go on a coffee run before he, Arin and Brian began writing lyrics for Starbomb. On his way to Starbucks he thought about how much he loved Arin and Brian and finally felt like he was getting somewhere with them. He’d stopped acting as if he hated Brian’s sexual comments and did the same that he did with Arin, he responded to them. 

Originally Dan freaked out about having a crush on a guy. He knew there wasn’t anything wrong with it but he’d never felt that way about a guy before. Brian had left to go teach at London, Dan didn’t want him to go but knew it was a great opportunity for his friend. At first he thought that he couldn’t stop thinking about Brian because older bands he had been in had split up due to people moving. They tried to make it work but it wasn’t possible. He hadn’t told Brian this as he didn’t want him to worry about this. As time went on Danny realised that, yes he was afraid of losing Brian and what they had worked hard on, but he was also afraid of losing Brian in general. He kept thinking about it and soon realised that he had a crush on Brian causing a lot of tears and a little bit of drinking which just made things worst. It took a while but he finally accepted it. 

Soon after the band became more successful and Brian decided to quit his job as a professor, he still loved physics and would never give it up but comedy was important to him to and he loved being in a band with Dan. 

It took a year and a half of being on Grumps for Dan to fall in love with Arin. At first Dan thought that this meant he was finally over Brian but that wasn’t the case. He began to freak out again. It felt wrong to love two people, especially two married people. He lernt about polygamous relationships and that made him feel a little better. Of course he didn’t think Brian and Arin would feel the same way about him but with the way things have been going lately was kind of giving him hope.

His walk didn’t take as long as he thought it would, the streets were usually busy but today seemed like a slow day. Starbucks wasn’t even that full. Dan guessed that a lot of people would probably be working around now and he was just happy that he didn’t have a normal job. He ordered coffee for himself and Brian. For Arin, who hated the taste of coffee he ordered a smoothie. The girl taking his order was obviously flirting with him and he smiled at her but subtly made it clear that he wasn’t interested, she didn’t seem to get the hint so when his drinks were ready he gave the girl a quick ‘thank you’ before getting the heck out of there before she made a move. 

When he got back to the Grump Space he was shocked at what he found. Brian and Arin were making out on the couch, and it seemed like they had planned to go further with the way Brian was palming Arin’s dick though his sweatpants.

Dan cleared his throat, announcing himself because it seemed as if they hadn’t noticed them. The two broke away as if they had just given each other a powerful electrical shock.   
Silence filled the room for a few minutes. Dan was waiting for them to explain. Brian and Arin were waiting for Dan’s reaction. When he realised they were going nowhere Brian finally spoke up. 

“I guess you’re going to want an explanation.”

“How long has this been going on for.” Dan could barely look at the two. It was stupid but he felt betrayed even though this was none of his business.

Arin hadn’t spoken at all, it seemed like he was still in shock. Out of the corner of his eye Dan saw Brian take Arin’s hand in his and squeezed it comfortingly. Dan felt sick and he hated it. What made it worse was the fact that Arin smiled and looked a lot more confident when this happened. 

“About a month. We haven’t been ready to tell anyone. Suzy and Rachel know and are okay with it, but we just want to keep it on the down low for a while just in case, this isn’t exactly normal and we thought people might react badly to it.” 

Dan could understand that. The main reason he had bottled up his feelings about the two was because he thought his friends might not accept it and he didn’t want his friends to think badly of him. 

“Dan, you’ll keep this to yourself, right?” 

Dan clenched his fists, he couldn’t believe Brian was asking him that, it was as if they hadn’t known each other for almost ten years. Arin also looked sceptical, adding to Dan’s irritation. 

“Sure.” It came out sounding a lot harsher than Dan meant it to but he didn’t really care. He was hurt, and although he didn’t want to tell the pair how he felt, but he wanted them to know. 

Brian glared at Dan. He couldn’t believe how he was reacting to this. He looked at Arin, who was frowning, his eyes full of fear and sadness. The way that Dan was looking at them with disgust angered Brian. He knew Dan could get a little weird when he or Arin jokingly flirted with him but he thought Dan had gotten over it. He also didn’t think that Dan was actually homophobic in anyway, he had a lot of fiend’s who were gay but when Brian thought about it the ones he was around a lot were female. The thought sickened Brian, this was one of his best friends. 

“Why can’t you be happy for us?” Brian’s voice was cold and laced with anger. Dan was surprised, Brian had never used that tone with him. Dan wanted to say that he was happy for them, but that would be a lie. Instead he remained silent, not knowing what to say. He didn’t want to tell them how he felt, he knew he would only get rejected, if either of them liked him in that way they would have told him already since they knew about polyamory. 

“Are you happy for us Dan?” Arin’s voice was so quiet, so afraid. When Dan didn’t answer Arin’s head dropped and he tried to hid the fact that he was crying. It broke Dan’s heart that he was hurting Arin. Plus, the way that Brian was looking at him made him feel uncomfortable. 

“Dan, I think it would be better if you leave,” Brian scowled before hugging Arin close to him. The younger man began crying harder and Dan could feel his heart breaking. 

“Arin I…”

“Dan get the fuck out of here. If you can’t accept us, then just leave.” It was obvious that Brian was trying not to shout because he was trying to comfort Arin. Dan wanted to say something but he just felt like he was going to burst into tears. He wanted to tell Brian that he wasn’t homophobic, in fact that would be incredibly hypocritical. Instead he left, he needed time to think about what he should say, and it seemed like it would be better to give Brian time to cool off. He hadn’t seen Brian get that infuriated in a long time, and never was that rage directed at him. 

He spent a few days not really doing anything, Barry was worried but he left Dan to it, knowing that if he wanted or needed to talk about it he would. If it carried on for longer than a week he would get involved. 

Dan figured things would be sorted out when he and Arin went to record together but Arin cancelled on the recording with nothing more than a quick text that held no apology or reason for bailing. 

A week passed and Barry decided it was time to help them sort it out. Arin and Brian had come in and said they were writing for Starbomb, and grimaces appeared on their faces when Barry asked if Dan was coming in too. Barry went home early, acting surprised when he saw Dan there. 

“Hey I thought you would be with Arin and Brian.”

Dan made a face similar to the one Arin and Brian made. 

“I mean I’m not scheduled to go in today.” Barry could see the mix of emotions on his face, he was confused, angry, upset, hurt, he knew Dan well enough to see this. 

“Oh, well, they’re writing Starbomb stuff so I just figured you’d be there.”

Dan instantly got off the couch, now filled with anger. It was scary to see him angry since it was rare but a big reaction was what Barry wanted, it was what was needed to hopefully sort this out. The three men were running from their problems, thinking time would solve them, and yes maybe that would work but it would take a while and they only had so much back catalogue. 

Dan toed on his shoes, giving a quick goodbye before storming out the house to his car. They couldn’t do this to him, he wasn’t about to lose everything he had worked hard for, he wasn’t being cut out or replaced. 

That idea scared him and as he drove his mind filled with images of getting kicked out of both of the bands and Brian replacing him as not so Grump. He wasn’t going to let that happen. He cared about them both too much to lose them and everything they’ve worked on together.

When he entered the Grump Space he was verging on tears but he didn’t care. Brian and Arin were the only one’s there and their eyes were instantly on him. Arin’s eyes were kind, he had wanted to talk to Dan since that day, Brian on the other hand still had a cold glare in his eyes, he wasn’t going to forgive Dan just because he was crying. 

“What are you doing here?” Brian’s voice was harsh, making Dan feel like he was being impaled with knives. 

“Trying not to lose everything I care about.”

Tears were falling down his face but he didn’t care at this point, all he wanted was for them to know that he loved them. 

Brian went to respond about how Dan only cared about fame and such, he knew that wasn’t true but it seemed like it at the moment. Arin stopped him in time, knowing Brian was going to say something he would definitely regret. 

“Let him explain himself.” 

Brian nodded, seeing reason. 

“Okay, I know I was a dick but believe me I am happy for you because I care about you guys. I guess I just felt hurt at the time.” 

Kindness was restored to Brian’s eyes and he made space between himself and Arin, patting the seat, encouraging Dan to sit with them. Although it felt awkward Dan also felt safe between them. 

“You know, I had been flirting with you for so long, and then I noticed Arin do the same thing. I warned him, we helped each other and such, comforting each other, and somewhere along the line fell in love, but we both still love you.”

Brian’s lips were against Dan’s neck, his words sending a shiver down Dan’s spine. Arin, who seemed a lot less confident, took to placing his hand on Dan’s hip, his thumb stroking him. 

“I love you guys too.” 

He could feel Brian smirking against his skin before he began kissing Dan. Arin seemed shocked, not expecting Dan to say that. Dan smiled before leaning in slightly, kissing Arin. When they parted for breath Brian turned Dan’s head, kissing his lips and Arin began kissing Dan’s neck, finding that spot on the left of his neck, just under his ear that was particularly sensitive. Dan wasn’t used to having this much attention on him, at least not in a romantic way. 

“Uh guys, I know you love each other and everything, but everyone uses that couch.” Ross laughed as he went over to his desk. Brian had forgotten he and Ross were recording today. 

“Goddamn it Ross,” Dan cursed, embarrassed at how breathy his voice was, and how obvious the tent in his jeans was. 

“Don’t worry baby, you’re coming home with us tonight.” With that Brian left to record with Ross, leaving Dan and Arin to cuddle for a while in comfortable silence.


End file.
